 | |
| Industry | Insurance |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1904 |
| Defunct | 1999 |
| Fate | Acquired |
| Successor | Zurich Financial Services |
| Headquarters | Cheltenham,Gloucestershire,England,United Kingdom |
Key people | Sir Denis Mountain, (Chairman) |
The Eagle Star Insurance Company plc (formerly Eagle Star Insurance Company Limited) was a leading Britishinsurance business. It underwrote the full range of risks including liability, fire, accident, marine, motor, life, contingency and Pluvius (weather) insurance. It was listed on theLondon Stock Exchange and was a constituent of theFTSE 100 Index.[1]
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The Company was founded byEdward Mountain in 1904 as theBritish Dominions Marine Insurance Company, which operated as a marine insurance office in the five principal overseas Dominions.[2] It started writing fire and accident policies in 1911 and life assurance policies in 1916.[2]
It expanded rapidly in its early years acquiringthe Eagle (founded by Sir William Rawlins in 1807) in 1916 and boththe Sceptre (founded in 1864) andthe Star (founded in 1843) in 1917.[2] It was renamed theEagle Star & British Dominions in 1917 andEagle Star in 1937.[2]
For many years its Head Office was at the prestigious address 1 Threadneedle Street, London EC2. However, a new administrative head office and computer centre was opened inCheltenham in October 1968.[2]
In 1981 it fought off a takeover bid fromAllianz, theGerman insurance Group.[3]
It was acquired byBAT Industries for £968m in 1984.[2] It continued to trade, under the Eagle Star name, until acquisition byZurich Financial Services in 1999.[4]
In the 1980s, the company supported theNature Conservatory and theRoyal Society for the Protection of Birds in the successful reintroduction ofsea eagles to Scotland.[5]
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